Soap package and method of making same



Dec. 5, 1944. F. J. WARREN 2,364,575

SOAP PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed May 10, 1941 i g] 1W M07 gunkw,e m,wn% J Patented Dec. 5, 1944 SOAP PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Frederick J.Warren, Newton, Mass, assignor to The Warren Soap Manufacturing Company, Inc., Cambridge, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application May 10, 1941, Serial No. 392,926

2 Claims. (Cl. 229-53) This invention relates to a soap package, to a container for use in making up the package, to a method of packaging soap and the like, and to a method of forming a cake of plastic substance such as soap with indented lines or grooves to serve as guides for cutting the cake into equal predetermined fractions.

In packaging soap for commercial use, it is economical to make up cakes of comparatively large size, 100 pound cakes being commonly made. As a lesser measured quantity of soap is often desired for use by commercial laundries, it is an object of the invention to provide a cake which can be readily cut up into predetermined fractions without the necessity of weighing such fractions. To this end, the cakes are made with indented lines or grooves in the surface to be used as guides for cutting the cakes into portions of predetermined weight.

It is another object of the invention to provide an economical method of packaging soap which comprises pouring fluid soap into flexible containers such as paper bags, closing the open ends of these bags and permitting the soap to solidify therein. By making such bags with properly placed inner ribs or ridges which are permanent so that they cannot be flattened by the hydrostatic pressure of liquid soap, the soap within such bags solidifies with such ribs embedded therein, so that when the bag is stripped from the cake of soap by the user, lines or grooves are left in the surface of the cake to act as guides for cutting the cake into fractions of desired weight. As commercial soap is sometimes stacked in warehouses for considerable periods of time, the lower packages being subjected to the weight of those above, it is necessary that such ribs on the inner surfaces of the bags be permanent as otherwise the ribs might be flattened and the lines or grooves inthe surface of the soap cakes obliterated by the pressure.

While the invention is described as particu: larly relating'to the packagin of soap, it is evident that it is equally applicable to other plastic substances which may be solidified by heat or cooling or drying and which are relatively firm and hard at ordinary atmospheric temperatures.

For a more complete understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the following description of certain embodiments thereof, and to the drawing of which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a package of soap embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of an open bag in a rigid container, ready to receive a quantity of soap.

Figure 3 is a section on the line 33 of Figure 1.

Figures 4., 5, 6, '7 and 8 are sectional views similar to Figure 3 but showing various modified forms of the invention.

According to'the invention, a bag it of flexible material, such as suitable paper, is prepared with permament ribs on its inner surface. These ribs are preferably arranged so that the lines indented thereby in the surface of the contents I4 of the bag will serve as guides to facilitate cutting the cake formed by and contained in the bag into a predetermined number of equal parts. The bag may be single-ply or multi-ply as desired and is preferably adapted to assume a rectangular shape so as to fit into a rectangular rigid container It to prevent excessive lateral bulging when the bag is being filled with soap in a fluent state. When a measured quantity of soap, say pounds, has been poured into the bag ID, the open end of the bag is then closed as at 20 by any suitable means so as to close the container- The bag may then be removed from the holder l6 and the soap allowed to cool and harden.

The inner ribs within the bag may be formed in a varietyof ways but should be permanent, that is, not capable of being-flattened by hydro static pressure of the contents of the bag when the latter is in liquid or fluent form. For example, Figure 3 illustrates a portion of the wall of the bag Ill which is internally pleated as at 22, the abutting faces of the pleat being cemented together as at 24 to prevent the pleat from being flattened out by liquid pressure of the soap l4. Figure 4 shows a similar pleat 28 which is made permanent by stitching 3% so that the pleat cannot be flattened out. In the form of the invention shown in Figure 5, a narrow paper strip 32 is formed with a central longitudinal pleat 34. The strip 32 is cemented to the inner surface of the bag wherever a rib is desired. Since the flat portions of the strip,

the inner surface of the bag wherever a rib is desired and other flexible materials may be used if not subject to obliteration or substantial deformation by heat or moisture. Figure 8 shows a line of stitching 40 in the bag 10, the stitching being such as to form a rib on the inner surface of the bag. Chain stitching is suitable for this purpose, a relatively coarse cord or thread being employed so as to provide a. rib of appreciable size which will indent the cake of soap in the bag.

When a cake of soap has been formed as hereinbefore described by pouring fluent soap into a bag, closin the open end of the bag, and allowing the soap to harden therein, the bag may be cut or torn from the cake of soap when the soap is desired for use. The inner ribs of the bag will then leave well defined lines or grooves in the surface of the cake to serve as guides to cut the cake into predetermined fractions;

It is evident that various modifications and changes may be made in the embodiments of the invention herein described and claimed without departing from the spirit or scope thereof as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A paper bag for packaging melted soap and the like, said bag having lines of stitching forming ribs on the inner surface thereof to indent the contents of the bag.

2. A paper bag for packaging melted soap and the like, said bag having inwardly projecting ribs composed of fibrous strands adapted to be embedded in the body of soap when the bag is filled.

FREDERICK J. WARREN. 

